Peckham Rye Station - rebuild

[ryelane]

http://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/s36853/Report%20Gateway%20to%20Peckham%20-%20Public%20Square%20and%20Station%20Regeneration.pdf

thoughts..?

[JDR]

I have the same concerns as several others who were made aware of this earlier today. Not only are they planning on taking down the shops at the front to create an open piazza they are potentially going to clear under the arches where there is a very established community of artists. These professional artists have been there for a long time and have done work with the regeneration. I would be pleased to see a freshening up of the area and welcome some new retail units but not at the expense of diverse community that have been and continue to add cultural and economic contributions which are ploughed back into the community. If we end up with completely new units with higher rents then it is likely the multinational/ chains will be the only ventures that can afford these and it would become another fairly bland high street ( something that happened near the cutty sark) and lose some of the uniqueness of the area.

[lameduck]

They regenerated Deptford train station last year

pulled down the front elevation. Deptford station was one of the earliest stations built[ I think it was one of the first] totally wrecked it. It now looks a sxxtheap no character. I hate developers!

[Louisa]

What a load of tosh. I remember Rye Lane in its golden years and it was full of chains. Clear the bloody lot of those disgusting dirty buildings and lets bring in some chains and get the place looking and smelling nice again. Is a dump down there at the moment and people like me are forced to shop further afield in Bromley, Croydon and Lewisham because we are so restricted with the awful state that place is in.

Louisa.

[JDR]

I'm not against some chains but don't think it is necessary to make it like everywhere else.... It can be a better shopping street nd maintain artist studios alongside them. It is the very like of these people who have facilitated the recent influx of young people who are starting to bring some of the shops back to life. It's a question of balance. No one I know wants it as it is at present but we don't have to rip it soul out in the process

[Louisa]

JDR, the area in front of the station is dark, smelly and dangerous at night. Clearing those 20th century buildings of poor quality will definitely be a good thing. Opening up the piazza and allowing new businesses to come in will to only give the entrance to the area a fresh look, but will reinvigorate retail in the area (hopefully). I am more sympathetic about the artists studios under the arches towards the back of the station and I agree that it would be a terrible shame to remove the catalyst which started the whole process of gentrification and interest in Peckham once more. On this, a balance has to be struck. However, you must be able to appreciate how long some of us residents have been waiting for Rye Lane to regain some sort of pride in itself again. I would love to have a big department store in the area, we definitely have the room for it. Since Jones & Higgins left, it's been a steep 33 year decline to where we are today. I'm sure a clean up, and a mixture of shops along that road could be a happy medium for everyone in the community.

Louisa.

[woodrot]

Louisa Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> What a load of tosh. I remember Rye Lane in its

> golden years and it was full of chains. Clear the

> bloody lot of those disgusting dirty buildings and

> lets bring in some chains and get the place

> looking and smelling nice again. Is a dump down

> there at the moment and people like me are forced

> to shop further afield in Bromley, Croydon and

> Lewisham because we are so restricted with the

> awful state that place is in.

>

> Louisa.

You have played your hand too early Louisa.This wouldnt have happened in the old days. You are losing your touch.

[The Minkey]

Is this an approximation of what's planned?

http://www.peckhamvision.org/wiki/Peckham_Rye_Station#Old_Billiard_Hall_comes_back_to_life.21_April_2009

The station building looks quite attractive with an open space out front which is how it was designed to be viewed.

[JDR]

Anyway, just heard that the councils plans were discussed this afternoon and a few locals attended with feedback. The councils plan appeared to be showing them clearing all of the land for vacant possession but this will not be happening. There has been some community protection agreed for local enterprises....

Relayed from Peckham Visions Facebook page ( look yourself for full detail as I can't cut and paste on this device...)

[LondonMix]

Its a restoration. They are just putting it back to how it was supposed to look when it was built in Victorian times. This has been in the works for a couple of years (there have been threads on the EDF about it ages ago) so I'm surprised there are people just finding out about it now.

[alice]

there's over 60 local companies - in the area they are selling as empty.

[dbboy]

Oh the days of M&S, C&A x 2, BHS, Jones and Higgins, Gretton Ward, lots of small varied independent retail outlets, deli in the arches, laundrette, pie and mash, tobaconist. button shop, electrical retail shop on corner (i think) of rye lane and blenheim grove.

[JDR]

I've lived here for 15 years and you're right it's well documented, though this is a great forum for increasing general knowledge. We know its supposed to be restoration but worried council will take the heart of the area out in the process....

I'm familiar with the plans, the restoration of the the room off platform three and staircase etc.... These are well known but the council and planners still don't have definitive plans and these are still in progress. To make sure it is what the residents and traders want we need active involvement in the process. There have been several versions over the years and there has been many a misrepresentation by authorities in the past ( notably regarding the 'unused' warehouses when they wanted to build a tram depot). To this end we all need to stay engaged if we want the area to have amenities we want at the end of the process

[LondonMix]

I've always understood that the shops and 20th century buildings would be cleared out to restore the Victorian square. I understand that for the businesses affected it must be galling. However, on balance restoring the square and improving the built environment is worth doing in my view. A beautiful built environment has a positive psychological impact on the community that should not be underestimated and has to be weighed up against the loss of amenity.

[JDR]

Dbboy, I work in healthcare locally and bemoan the loss of the shops every time a patient hears I live in Peckham... Jones and Higgins as being better than a visit to the west end. I now officially live in east Dulwich but my true allegiance still lies in Peckham... Hopefully one day I may get to return ;-) and I continue t thank Eileen Conn for being a brilliant advocate of Peckham and such a notable force within the umpteen committees she sits on with regards this stuff. The fact several terrible options have been avoided is due to her quick and timely dissemination of info over the past 12/13 years. She truly deserves a medal

[UncleBen]

That area is a toilet. Get rid of the filthy grotty 'shops' there, 'artists' and the other workshy. This does not have to mean replace with chain stores, and hope it doesn't but about time the health hazard shops were bulldozed. Restore the station. And yes, Rye Lane used to be a decent and pleasand shopping area.

[JDR]

Londonmix - I agree with that part, but the council were also hoping to take over all decisions regarding the arches as well which are along Blenheim Grove- (though they now state this was only due to a poorly worded document)I am all for the reinstatement of the beautiful architecture with space to appreciate its scale. ( though the alleys smell significantly better than they used to be and I'm not going to miss the hair tumbleweed that frequents them). Agin it's the balance the council strikes. As much as we don't like the status quo we have to work with existing businesses from all ethnic backgrounds and improve it within our varied communities. Personally I'm really excited about it, so long as its done sympathetically. Anyway, done my night on the soap box, will retire now and put my head back in the box ;-)

[JDR]

Uncleben - the artist you refr to are locally and in some cases of national renown. I'm unclear why they are work shy when renting, making, and supporting their own businesses? Perhaps you know something I don't?

[UncleBen]

Memories - co-op dept store at top of rye lane/heaton rd, Co-Op funeral parlour, Sydney Ross toy shop, Poppins restaurant, Fads diy, gents clothes shop, Euronics electronic goods, Reeds record shop, lingerie shop, Leeds BS, Halifax BS,Wimpy, M&S, C&A (it took me ages to get the knicker joke!), pie & mash shop (on Bleinham/arch), sweet shop (right hand side station entrance), Sainsburys, Woolworths, Levis store, sports shop, BHS, Zodiac toyshop, Millets, Jones&Higgins. . . .

Edited to add memories

[JohnL]

Nothing wrong with communities of artists - but I thought this was mainly the Bussey building

Something needs to kick start a bit of further variety on Rye lane - not the ethnic stores

(which have improved since 2007 when I moved here) but the bookies and pay day loan merchants.

Still would like some kind of social shops - coffee bars. Ozzie's is Okay but something a little

more too.

[Michael Palaeologus]

The fact is that Peckham Rye station is a dump and needs a facelift. It also feels quite threatening at night. Opening it out and creating space would help.

That's not to say that the local traders and artists don't deserve a place to trade, but they could be accommodated in Peckham. It still has a lot of space available.

All could win here.

[ryelane]

was posting this more to highlight how they were planning to clear all the business along blenheim grove, not just at the front of the station.

but as you say that plan seems to have been (temporarily) defeated!

i agree the space in front of the station isn't used to its full ability. hopefully a rebuild of it won't bring in costa coffee...

[Otta]

The buildings in front of the station are a total eyesore, getting rid of them and having a nice open forecourt would be good IMO.

That said, I hardly go near Peckham these days, so do what you want.

[Louisa]

The fact so few people from ED choose to shop in Rye Lane, speaks volumes. When I was a child, people not only came from ED, but from as far afield as Lewisham and Clapham to visit the famous 'Golden mile'. All people do now, is use the station to get to and from work and ignore the ghastly mess which has become of Peckham's town centre. Opening up the station square will attract some decent chains once more as well as some decent independents hopefully too. It will have a dominoe effect on the rest of Rye Lane and create a great shopping destination once more. It's the gateway to ED from further afield now that the Overground extension is open. It's improvement will impact upon us in SE22 too.

Louisa.

[KidKruger]

I shop a couple of times a week Rye Lane, weekends and evenings.

However, based on EDF posts you cannot have any idea how many/what proportion of shoppers at Rye lane are from ED !

I actually like Rye Lane the way it is, I could go with the station forecourt being brought back to it's alleged former glory, but am happy with (and use) the grocers, butchers, fishmongers.

If Rye lane reverted to some vanilla high st I'd have to shop elsewhere because it'd probably mean my usual 'etno stores' would be closing.